


Head Over Heels

by Zen_monk



Series: Smoke and Mirrors [2]
Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Budding Romance, Developing Friendships, F/M, Gen, Giant fanfic plunge, Greek Chorus OCs, Guest starring Omozu from prologue chapters, Male-Female Friendship, sparring match
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-13
Updated: 2016-10-13
Packaged: 2018-08-22 06:04:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8275424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zen_monk/pseuds/Zen_monk
Summary: Nothing can forge relationships better than participating in a routine training day in Shirasagi Castle, and getting soundly thrashed (and possibly maiming someone) at the tender age of fourteen.





	

Cicadas hummed and shrieked in the summer under the blazing sun. Groups of ninja-in-training stood on the sidelines at the wide practice field, kicking their feet impatiently on the dusty ground as they watched their fellow trainees spar against one another. Some of them gave rowdy cheers and encouraged their friends, but mostly it was too hot to do anything more than wipe their faces with a towel that hung around their necks or sit in the shade with their tunics hanging off around their waists as they prepped their weapons.

  
Kagero and her fellow female ninja were finishing an indoor training exercise to hone their skills in tight-quarters combat when they stepped out onto the porch when they heard a loud cheer coming from one side of the training square. A crowd had gathered to witness a match, and in the center she could see the tall figure of a young man with bright red hair stalking around the training circle where a figure lay prone on the dust. Seemingly satisfied, he straightened his back and put his hands forward in a mudra of victory, blunt shuriken wielded in both hands.

  
“Heh. There’s another,” he said boastfully. He unfolded his arms and reached down to help up the youth on the ground, who only nodded in tired acknowledgement.

  
Beside her, a pair of girls pointed with excitement.

  
“Look, that’s Saizo lording it up over there.”

  
“And where there’s Saizo, there’s Kaze nearby,” said the other in hushed anticipation.

  
Scanning around, they spotted their quarry and exclaimed quietly, barely containing their pleasure. Following their gaze, Kagero saw the other twin standing with arms crossed at the edge of the circle with the other ninja. He wore a pleasant expression on his face, as though the heat has never reached him, and he extended a towel towards his brother as the victorious one made his way over to grab it. When the two were younger, they were as similar looking as twins could be save for their hair coloring and their personalities. Now, in their teens, Kagero could see the differences between the two as indicative of the paths they took.

  
Both are of the same height, and in some ways similar build, and she doesn’t think they trained any differently from each other, but Kaze’s self-consciousness had him seem more subdued. He was the first to greet his brother but the first to linger outside the circle as other move to cheer on Saizo, who seemed to absorb as much of their energy as possible. With scarves discarded due to the summer heat and humidity, Saizo’s broad shoulders and chest seemed more muscular and hardy as he stretched and waved his arms to warm up the joints. Kaze was the only one with his scarf on, which made him seem even more inexplicable, and thus accentuated a more lithe and slighter form.

  
Not that it mattered when it comes to their respective skills, but there was never any shortage of people going up to talk to Kaze even though he seemed to be a bit of a shadow in comparison to his brother, and his subdued demeanor was more open and friendly whilst Saizo’s gregariousness and pride seem to shrug off any attempts of personal contact.

  
Kagero leaned against a wooden pillar, content to relax in the shade and cool down from her training exercise with the other female ninja, and watch the others engage in various circles of combat in the field. She was not the only one observing the two brothers from Igasato. Of the small group that entered for the summer training regimen in Shirasagi, the two that were constantly talked about were Saizo the Fourth’s progeny. None other held greater interest than the women, almost of all ages even, and that was no less different than today with Kagero’s compatriots.

  
The pair who had diverted Kagero’s attention to the brothers made their way side by side towards Kaze, The other ninja gave them sidelong glances, but plain on their tired and sweaty faces were shared feelings of annoyance and exhaustion as Kaze was showered with their attention.

  
She caught snippets of their conversation, having recently been honing her hearing to catch an average conversation from a distance away, but it was nothing so important to pay mind to. Even though it was Saizo who had won his fights, it was Kaze they congratulated and took excuse to make it about him and not his twin. At their bombardment of compliments, Kaze’s entire being stiffened nervously and he almost shrank away from them in spite of maintaining an air of collected calm and friendliness. He held his hands up to them as they edge closer, almost warding them off, and then placed a hand behind his head to rub nervously, as though reluctant.

  
Kagero looked back at Saizo, who crouched and rewound his arm bindings around his wrists and hand. He looked back at the scene only to roll his eyes in disdain, but otherwise paid them no mind. His eyes wandered up from his hands, and briefly they met with Kagero’s. Smoothly, she blinked and looked away, barely changing her expression. Another feature of difference was the intensity that Saizo emit from his person. A brief glance and it was like his eyes bored through deeply with an energy that bordered on a glare no matter how relaxed he was. Coupled with his pride and more obvious displays of strength, of which he drew no quarter, he was truthfully very intimidating.

  
She looked back at the scene. The two girls were making their way back from Kaze, who sighed in relief when their backs were turned from him. They whispered and laughed with one another, and rejoined the other women in relaxing on the porch, taking in ladles of cold barley tea from a tub filled with ice and a tray of cups. A match between two other ninja had about finished amid cheers and some clapping. Kagero doesn’t recognize the two, only differentiating between the other by their red and white hachimaki worn on their foreheads to signify their respective teams. She guessed, however, that the white one might belong to the Igasato nin, as the ninja clans from Hoshido’s capital had wanted to compare themselves to other known villages especially from where the Saizo clan hails from, and both of Saizo’s sons wore white as they welcomed the current victor back to their side of the circle.

  
“Another one for Igasato,” declared Saizo, then said brazenly, ”Who’s next on our kill list?”

  
The red team all displayed various gestures of distaste.

  
“Are you for real?” grumbled someone.

  
“Why are you so worked up, it’s just an exercise!” groaned another.

  
“Gods, it’s too hot for this nonsense. What are you so proud for, winning a couple of matches? It’s not a competition!”

  
“Just looking at him makes the heat worse…”

  
Similar groans of dissent arose from the group, some looking resentfully at the Igasato ninja.

  
“So is this how Shirasagi expect their ninja to behave?” exclaimed Saizo, incredulous. “A little sunshine and some losses, and you all wither like unwatered flowerbeds. Unbelievable!”

  
All of red team glared at Saizo. To the white team’s credit, they seemed to not pay much mind to Saizo’s boasts or support it, but they likewise gave a challenging glance towards the others in spite of their more relaxed demeanor. Some of the other groups nearby stopped their sparring and looked right at Saizo as though expecting to divert their next match against him.  
Kagero heard sneers coming from some of her compatriots.

  
“What’s Saizo doing throwing his weight around?” muttered one girl.

  
“He’s always picks fights around here, just to toss around that Saizo name of his.”

  
“If it’s Suzukaze who got the Saizo legacy, I’d follow him forever,” said one, prompting knowing giggles from around her.

“Right? I mean, he’s so cool and humble, fame wouldn’t go to his head; he’d treat it as an actual honor, and not an excuse to fight. It’s a waste for a legacy to go to some glorified chili pepper.”

  
Giggling became loud laughter. Kagero cracked a smile.

  
“You know, they say that small dogs bark the most just to compensate for their size. I wonder what it is that Saizo’s compensating for,” said the girl next to her, wiggling eyebrows for emphasis. That prompted even more sniggering.

  
“No no! Don’t jinx it! What might be true for Saizo might be true for Kaze!” 

“They’re not identical!”

  
“Are you blind? Their appearances are too close to call, even for fraternal twins! Don’t ruin our dreams!”

  
“Oh? And what kind of dreams are they?”

  
The giggling became a full on cackle, and before long everyone was making loud and, frankly, vulgar conversation from the engawa.

  
Kagero then noticed that the girls’ conversation was no longer private. More than a few ninja in the practice yard turned their heads their way, and not many with a pleased look.

  
“Hey! Don’t you hens have anything better to do than cluck all day long!” One of the red team ninja, a broad-shouldered assertive type of person one might see leading a group or an ouendan troop, took an indignant step forward towards the group. “If you got time to lay around fanning yourselves like it’s tea time, you should get out to the training grounds right now!”

  
“Like you’re doing anything productive, Hasegawa!” retorted a tall girl at the aforementioned aggressor. Kagero didn’t need to turn her eyes to the speaker, knowing that the proud authoritative voice belonged to Chihiro, one of the senior ninja who was helping her group in the indoor training exercise. “We all finished our work, and here you are in a pissing contest with allies at the castle! What would General Yukimura say seeing you all antagonizing our visitors like a bunch of half-naked children with your asses hanging out.”

  
The other girls jeered in agreement, and now many groups have turned their attention towards them. The Igasato group, in particular, looked very pleased amongst themselves while Saizo smirked towards Kaze’s direction. Other Shirasagi ninja began to snicker in spite of themselves.

  
Hasegawa face, ears, and neck turned on a bright shade of red, so that it almost looked like steam was coming out of his ears. Still, he restrained himself from breaking his temper.

  
“And what would General Yukimura say if he heard the way all of you carrying on? For shame! What would he think when he hears all this filth coming out of your mouths, like some kind of flock of painted ladies wandering about the red light district!”

  
This was met with even more jeers and indignant yelling from both sides of the field.

  
“Hypocrite!”

  
“If you care so much, then Yukimura should listen to the filth all of you say!”

  
All manner of slander was hurled towards each other on the field. It was met with emboldened accusations from all around, and it wasn't long before they drew the attention of several field instructors and attendants from inside the buildings.

  
“What the hell is going on?!”

  
A hush fell on the whole crowd. One of the field instructors, Ninja Master Omozu, thundered onto the field with his face darkened in rage, sweat beading on his forehead from the day-long training under the sun. As he moved towards the center of the conflict, ninja and soldier alike moved away from him as though his very presence parted waves.

  
“Why is everyone idling around arguing?” he raged. “Is this a schoolyard scrap or a training exercise? For shame, Shirasagi! I expect better of you than to air out salacious grievances. Who started this?"

  
A pregnant pause. Then a foolish voice came from the field: “The girls are being perverts, sir!”

  
Raucous laughter erupted from the field. The female ninja standing on the engawa were less than amused, glowering at the crowd with dark scowls.

  
“Shut up!” yelled Omozu. He whirled towards the accused. “Who is the group leader?”

  
Chihiro stepped forward. “Mochizuki Division 3, Unit 4 Chihiro, sir!”

  
Omozu turned towards the field ninja, identifying and singling out the primary group involved in the feud. “And you!”

  
Hasegawa flinched when Omozu landed his glare at him, and he stood to attention, shoulders almost shaking with how stiff he held himself. “Yukimura Division 1, Unit 1 Hasegawa Hajime, sir!”

  
Omozu shifted his gaze between the group leaders, a hard glare boring into their very beings. “Chihiro-kun, explain yourself.”

  
She nodded and replied, “Certainly. Our unit and I have finished our training exercise with Mochizuki-sensei. We have been cooling down afterwards while watching the field, and talking amongst ourselves. Hasegawa-kun then decided to take offense to our presence, and pushed his frustrations upon us. We’ve done nothing wrong and have neither instigated anything to warrant this feud!”

  
Hasegawa scoffed and rolled his eyes.

  
“Oh please…” he muttered.

  
Omozu redirected his gaze back to Hasegawa, who quickly straightened his scowl.

  
“Hasegawa,” prompted Omozu. The young man took a deep breath and began.

  
“Captain Omozu, I apologize for the disturbance caused between my group and theirs.”

  
On Kagero’s left, she heard someone mutter “Phony” from under her breath.

  
“However, I believe that we had good cause for our argument. While we were practicing with the Igasato ninja, we were distracted by their loud gossiping and carrying on, which quite frankly were inappropriate and undignified.”

  
“Oh boy,” Omozu said, under his breath. Ninja and soldiers from all around began to raise their voice in protest. He raised his fist up, and the field fell into silence once more.

  
“Care to elaborate what you mean by “inappropriate” and “undignified,” Hasegawa-kun?”

  
The teenager grew red in the face and neck, and spluttered, “I mean, well, um…”

  
People around him began to snicker and smirk knowingly until he couldn’t take it anymore.

  
“We were sparring with Igasato when some of the kunoichi came over to bother us with their petty gossip, and to top it off they started flirting and making eyes like a bunch of low-rate courtesans!”

  
Frustrated groans came from the engawa, which did nothing to stop Hasegawa from continuing.

  
“And let me just say that I find it demeaning and borderline harassment the way they all judge us as though we were one display for them!”

  
No sooner had the words left his mouth that a peach pit struck him between the eyes. He cried out and held both hands on his forehead, looking up to glare at whoever assaulted him with watering eyes.

  
“That’s the last straw, Hasegawa,” declared a girl from Chihiro’s left side. “Since when were you so concerned about harassment? Just earlier today you and your buddies were comparing girls with the Igasato nin!”

  
The yard became rowdy once again. Master Omozu, caught in the middle, hung his head in dismay, his face contorted in frustration and anger while a vein became visible upon his neck. Kagero closed her eyes. The peaceful summer afternoon was torn beyond repair. She patted her face with the towel hanging around her neck and quietly made herself scarce, merging with the crowd behind her until she turned around the corner.

  
It was cooler behind the building, and the noise of the crowd not quite as piercing. Master Omozu’s voice could still be heard among the various arguments and accusations declared between the two parties.

  
“Enough of this idiotic display! Chihiro! Hasegawa! Get your cohorts and come with me, we’re going to discuss this without making a display of ourselves. As for the rest of you! Since you all apparently got your blood hot for something other than training, everyone in my line of sight has to run five laps around the practice field! Don’t you dare run away! I will hunt you all down!”

  
Kagero allowed a small smile for herself as the commotion changed into a wave of panic and thunderous footsteps. She wondered if perhaps she ought to join in the running, but decided that she left just in time before she would be caught in someone else’s consequences. At fourteen years old, she wasn’t quite in the same peerage as the other older teenagers in her current group, and with her training having changed to developing more complex skill sets and maneuvers, she felt more distant from ninja her age and younger who are not quite to her level yet. Not that there were many to begin with, which made her appreciate her friendship with Orochi ever more.

  
She rounded the corner so she was on the other side of the building, and she was facing the direction where the Igasato ninja were, who were lounging near the shade of the cherry blossom trees caring for their weapons or doing cool down stretches. Having not participated in the heat of the moment, and probably also being visitors witnessing a domestic problem, they were left largely alone although no doubt Omozu would be thorough in his interrogation and would fetch them later.

  
The group itself wasn’t too large, comprising of six individuals from Igasato including Saizo the Fourth’s sons. They look to be of various ages, youngest seeming about twelve years old and the oldest probably around sixteen. All are boys, which slightly intimidated her, but her interest was piqued enough to make her way towards them.

  
Saizo crouched by the base of the cherry tree while his brother Suzukaze stood next to him leaning against the trunk. He patted away sweat dripping from his forehead and neck with a towel, and took a swig of water from a skin.

  
“Well, this is a scene,” sighed Saizo. “Can’t these whiners focus long enough to get some work done?”

  
“It’s too hot to do anything,” murmured Kaze. Saizo looked up to stare balefully at him.

  
“Say that to Father. This is practically a vacation compared to the ordeal he put us all through.”

  
The others muttered in agreement.

  
“Ten kilometers run up and down the mountain everyday,” said one, not looking up from his equipment sorting.

  
“Balancing on spikes for hours,” said another, pouring water over his head.

  
“Agility runs through treacherous terrain.”

“And we have to do all the farm work before the end of the day,” sighed Kaze.

  
Everyone sighed heavily.

  
“Well, tomorrow General Yukimura is having us do something, so here’s hoping for something interesting,” grumbled Saizo.

“Ara, that demonstration wasn’t interesting enough?”

All of them looked up when they heard Kagero approach, which made her pause slightly, but she continued until she’s close enough to their circle.

  
She kept her hands folded behind her back, making her demeanor seem as open and cordial as can be. Still, she shifted nervously on her feet, feeling self-conscious by their scrutinizing her.

  
The boy tending his equipment spoke up. “You’re not running?”

  
Kagero shrugged. “I was not in Master Omozu’s line of sight, so I suppose that I am exempted from that exercise.” That earned a chuckle from him.

  
The older boy tilted his chin at her. “Excuse me, but can we help you?”

  
Kagero lowered her hands and nodded at him. “Sorry for the intrusion. My name is-”

  
“Kagero.”

  
All eyes are directed at Suzukaze, who spoke softly but smiled in her direction. Saizo looked at her in thought, and then his expression opened as recognition dawned on him. His face didn’t look less guarded, however. Kagero smiled softly and nodded.

  
“Indeed. I am Kagero. Nice to meet you all.” The others spoke up in returning greeting, save for Suzukaze and Saizo. “But I’ve met Suzukaze and Saizo before when they last visited the capital. It’s nice to see the two of you again, it’s been a while.”

  
“You can call me Kaze, Kagero.” From the corner of her eye, a couple boys rolled their eyes in exasperation. The way Kaze phrased it so was no doubt taken as a lure for the girls, whether he intended to or not.

  
“So what brings you here, Kagero?”

  
She turned her gaze down at Saizo, who looked up at her while his head was still lowered. From that position, his eyes seemed larger, more piercing, and she noticed that like his twin he had long eyelashes. When she last met him, he was a boy with explosive energy and a reedy voice to match Kaze’s more bell-like tone. Now, his voice has gotten deeper, lower actually than his younger brother, and if she listened carefully she might still detect the strain that happens when a boy’s voice changed to that of a man’s.

  
“I was watching your match with the Shirasagi shinobi. It was interesting.”

  
Saizo scoffed. “Hardly.”

  
Kagero lowered her eyes. “Truly?”

  
He scratched the back of his head, impatient. “If you saw me fight, then you saw the whole party that took place.”  
She smiled gently. “I was right at the center of it before I bowed out.”

  
“Then I don’t need to explain myself. Am I supposed to believe that this playground of sex-obsessed kids is the best that Shirasagi has to offer?”

  
The oldest put his hands on his hips and glared at Saizo.

  
“That’s some pretty big talk coming from a kid himself,” he exclaimed. Saizo threw his hands up in dismay.

  
“Then why am I doing all the work here? Even Hanzo over there has more focus than people your age, Yusuke!”

  
Saizo pointed at the youngest of the group, who sat furthest from him in the circle. The aforementioned Hanzo looked up in surprise at the sound of his name, darted his small eyes between the crouching Saizo and the standing Yusuke towering over. His face reddened, and he hastily looked away, as though there was an urgent need to look at the buildings opposite in their direction.

  
Yusuke glowered and said, “What work? You keep hogging all the sparring matches to yourself just to show off!”

  
“Not my fault that everyone wanted to try their hand against a Saizo.”

  
“Which you encouraged! Everyone’s been giving us the evil eye every time you, and your brother-” he lifted his gaze pointedly at Kaze. “-mess around in this training ground!”

  
Kaze held up a conciliatory hand.

  
“First, I did nothing wrong. Second, it’s bad enough that we have to see a whole training yard arguing about, uh, private things, but I don’t think Kagero is here to see us argue about nothing.”

  
Taking the opportunity, Kagero nodded. “You're right, I’m not. I’m also not here for a chat, either. I’m here to change your mind.”

  
Saizo scowled. “I have valid feelings about these people, and I’m not afraid to air them to anyone who asks.”

  
She shook her head slightly, her long hair swaying in its braid.

  
“I’m not going to change how you feel about the people around you. It’s not up to me to bear that responsibility. However, I’m not going to let what you said stand.”

  
He raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Which is?”

  
“I’m here to challenge your assessment.”

  
A brief silence fell over the ninja. Saizo lifted his chin and regarded her squarely in the eyes.

  
“Meaning?” he asked.

  
Kagero kept her shoulders squared, and said confidently, “It seems as though you were disappointed with your matches with our ninja, and I heard you say we have lower standards. I won’t let that slide.”

  
Saizo stood up, smoothly unbending his knees from his crouched position. She noticed that for all his swagger and assumed confidence, his build still has the lithe shadow of a boy’s, and that he was only slightly taller than her with her forehead meeting his eyes. Nevertheless, he was now tall enough to start looking down from his nose, and he seemed to utilize that look well.

  
“So, what? You want a match with me?”

  
Unflinching, she replied, “Unless the summer heat is too much for you.”

  
Saizo smirked and placed his hands on his hips, arching his back in an almost careless action. “So you’re going to defend Shirasagi’s entire reputation on your shoulders? Now that’s a load to carry. Are you going to handle the disappointment after you lose?”

  
Cooly, Kagero said, “Don’t get cocky after winning a few matches in a row. I’ve been taught that in accordance to the mutual respect warriors have towards one another, I must give all I have. That is the Shirasagi way, and I will do my best to represent that through my strength.”

  
The oldest, Yusuke, let out a low whistle, and everyone’s expressions took on more open interest. Saizo looked at her with steady eyes, and wordlessly they stared at each other while weighing her words.

  
He sighed. “Sounds good to me. But words are wind, and no matter what you say I’ll be the judge of how good Shirasagi’s ninja are.”

  
Kagero closed her eyes, satisfied. “I can expect no less.”

  
Saizo led the way, followed after by two of his group and Kagero, who took deep quiet breaths to calm the flutter in her stomach in the battle to come. She had sparred before with her group mates and while training with the older ninja, but this was the first time she would go against another village’s ninja. Going out of her way to initiate her own first contact instead of letting it happen from the instructors made her feel bolder, like coming into her own identity as a warrior while putting behind her childhood.

  
Those who stayed at the grove of trees were Kaze, Yusuke, and the young Hanzo, who watched Saizo and the female challenger move towards one of the sparring circles. Yusuke stepped closer to Kaze, his eyes not leaving the four people.  
“So you’ve met Kagero before?”

  
Kaze nodded. “Brother and I have both visited Shirasagi before, and we were introduced to the royal family and their retainers.”

  
Yusuke tilted his head at the girl. “So, what, is she some retainer’s kid or a noble who got recruited? She speaks so oddly for her age.”

  
Kaze folded his arms in thought. “Truly? I thought everyone in Shirasagi castle spoke like that.”

  
Yusuke shook his head. “No way, have you heard just anybody else here talk like that? Only nobles make their kids speak like they’re always at a ceremony or with important people. Or if they’re super snooty and trying to impress.”

  
Kaze raised his hand to hold his chin, thinking. “I guess so. I think she told me her family served the royal family as a long line of ninja, but… when last I saw her, she was with her older brother. So she is training here too…?”

  
Yusuke shrugged. “Yeah, but the Saizo clan is an old family too, and we’re not a bunch of stiffs. She’s probably apprenticed or under vassalage to someone in the castle.”

  
Kaze lowered his head. “I did meet the other retainers who served the siblings, but not her. But I recall that one other girl her age served under Lady Mikoto and talk of another girl too, so I guess…” his voice trailed off, lilting slightly in a question.

  
The other boy gave a double take.

  
“No way!”

 

* * *

  
They stopped at the sparring circle where Saizo and his cohorts trained with the Shirasagi ninja. The field was relatively calmer save for the herd of people running around the practice field, the air echoing with their tramping and Master Omozu bellowing at them to continue. Kagero’s hand went to her holster by her hip, pulled out her blunt training kunai and weighed it between her hands. Saizo stalked around the circle, restless, and stretched his arms and shoulders.

  
“So how shall we do this?” He asked Kagero.

  
Kagero slashed the air a couple of times, switching the blade between her hands. “Two out of three would suffice. Submission and overpowering counts as automatic points. I doubt Master Omozu would carelessly omit any chance for someone to be accidentally maimed today.”

  
Saizo smirked. He brought out his own blunt kunai from his holster and twirled it expertly in his hand before settling on a reverse grip.

  
“Fine by me.”

  
One of his cohorts, a slightly shorter boy with a sly face, went to the center of the circle to assume as judge while the other two took their place opposing each other.

  
“Okay, so,” he drawled. “I, Goemon, shall judge today’s match. Rules are simple: as said, no maiming or serious injury. So don’t stab each other’s eye out or slice an artery, right? You all can fight though a broken nose, though. First thrown out of line gets a point to the opponent. Submission is key. Disarming doesn’t count, so don’t expect someone to bow out just because they dropped their knife. Oh yeah, and Saizo?”

  
Startled at having to be singled out, he looked uncertainly at Goemon.

  
“What?”

  
“Don’t use this as a chance for some ‘accidental’ touching,” teased Goemon, his face taking on a suggestive sneer.  
Saizo turned red in the ears. Kagero likewise turned away in embarrassment, a gesture not gone unnoticed by him.

  
“Quit messing around, Goemon!” He yelled.

  
The judge raised his hands up and shoulders, a careless gesture.

  
“C’mon Saizo, when’s the last time you fought a girl? You can’t just nab her willy nilly from anywhere on her body and toss her overboard. Cuz let me tell ya, sis,” he turned his head towards Kagero, his hand up to the side of his face to speak conspiratorially to her. “Between you and me, this guy likes to get handsy and grab people by the front and-”

  
Suddenly, Saizo grabbed Goemon by the front of his shirt, raging incoherently in his face while shaking him back and forth. The boy seemed unconcerned by the manhandling or the fuming ninja snarling in his face, and turned his head in Kagero’s direction.

  
“See? Case in point!”

  
“Can we please start!” Kagero yelled, her cheeks flustered into a bright pink from embarrassment and exasperation. She shook her head as Saizo let the guy go and walked back to his place, neck and ears red while Goemon straightened his clothes.

  
“Okay, now that we know the rules…” he looked pointedly at both combatants, in which one glared back with murderous intent and the other closing her eyes to force herself to concentrate. “We’ll begin on my mark.”

  
He raised his hand. Saizo and Kagero crouched with lowered heads and eyes steady at each other. The runners passed them and various voices were heard shouting encouragement at Kagero and interest at the battle.

  
Goemon dropped his hand.

  
They began circling each other, neither making an immediate move before looking for an opening. Saizo looked unwaveringly at Kagero, face and brow taking on a look of intense concentration and seriousness that she hadn’t before faced by other trainees in Shirasagi. It was an earnestness that energized the fight, his lips only slightly upturned showing his pleasure.  
Saizo took the chance. He charged forward, raising his arm to slash upward almost striking her abdomen. From the wide arc of his swing, it would be difficult to move away or sidestep, and if she blocked she would have been knocked back by the brunt of his force.

  
She jumped back just in the nick of time, and sidestepped away from his second blow, a fluid continuation from his first strike.

  
Saizo quickly turned around, so his back was not vulnerable, and she skirted opposite him on the other side of the ring, resuming their previous stalking. A spike of adrenaline, anticipation brimming almost to the brink. She allowed a small smile to grace her lips.

  
Kagero planted her feet squarely on the ground, preparing. It took almost a split second for Saizo to guard himself before she sprung upon him. Her speed was her pride. From a low position, she sprinted forward and slashed at his arm, intending to disarm. Hastily, Saizo blocked the first strike but had to dodge the subsequent quick slashes as she didn’t let up her assault. He almost lost his footing as he blindly tried to sidestep her.

  
“Gh-!”

  
He grounded his feet into the ground, standing firm, and allowed her to strike at him. She realized too late his intention, as her kunai struck against his uselessly, almost rebounding her, sending reverberations down her arm as the sound rang into the air.

  
Like lightning he clamped his hand down on her wrist with his other hand, and he flashed a triumphant grin.

  
“Heh.”

  
He proceeded to pull her forward, throwing her off balance. Kagero let out a gasp.

  
But before he could twist her arm into a hold, she whirled around him. A brief glance shared, and she saw blank shock in his eyes. She twisted out of his hold and, dropping her kunai, grabbed the front of his shirt with her other hand and used the momentum to flip him up and over her.

  
The world spun upside down in his eyes. Everyone’s breath was held. Her heart pounded in her ears and dully she heard herself gave a sharp cry as she threw him down onto the ground.

  
He rolled across, clumsily had his arms around him in a defensive position, and he was hastily on his hands and knees. Not giving an inch, Kagero grabbed one of the fallen kunai from the ground and barreled right towards him. She made him dropped down flat, pulled his right hand to twist behind his back, and swiftly placed the edge of her blade against his throat.

  
They both froze. She looked down upon him, saw his eyes straining to look up at her and away, the other side of his face pressed flat against the dirt. For a moment there was only heavy breathing.

  
Goemon raised his hand swiftly.

  
“Point to Kagero! Oh ho ho, nice!”

  
Goemon and his friend clapped gleefully, delighting in the performance. “Oh, Haruto, did you see that upset,” he said to the other boy.

  
Haruto clicked his tongue and replied, “All I saw was Saizo’s eyes wide as saucers as he tumbled.”

  
Kagero swiftly removed her kunai and stepped away from Saizo, giving him space to stance up. She dusted her pants and shirt down, wriggling her arms and legs to check for injuries. Saizo for his part laid still on the ground for a moment, and then sprang up, not looking up as he dusted himself off as well.

  
“Not bad,” he muttered.

  
For a moment, she wondered if he was angry or upset, but when he raised his eyes, they were flinty and serious.

  
Kagero stepped forward and handed him the kunai she was holding.

  
“This one is yours,” she said, proffering the hilt.

  
Looking steadily into her eyes, he reached and took it, fingers briefly brushing against hers before he turned away to move opposite from her.

  
Absentmindedly, she rubbed her fingers with her other hand, feeling a slight jolt of the nerves from his touch, and scanned the ground for her knife. Having found it, she moved opposite from him and assumed her position.

  
A crowd slowly began to gather, watching from a distance, and some runners slowed their pace to watch. In the distance, one could hear sneering, and Saizo’s face took on a darkened scowl.

  
Goemon raised his hand.

  
“Round two!”

  
A moment’s pause, and a deep breath. He swiftly lowered his arm.

  
This time they were bolder, moving towards each other simultaneously. Blows and slashes were traded, each blocked, parried, and dodged expertly as they renewed their concentration against one another. Gone was the hesitation and testing. The waters between them were clear and they began to bravely use their moves.

  
Saizo was brash. He took no quarter and when he saw and opening he took it. With each blow avoided and parried, she could feel the force of his body behind them. More than once, she was nearly forced back, but her footwork was deft enough to remain close to him. He was also very precise; when she can, she saw his hand with the knife expertly adjusting and switching grip to better utilize against specific strikes and points against her body. It took almost all she had to avoid a clean hit, but knew at this rate she would be whittled down.

  
Swiftly, she twisted away from him, and switched her hand to use a reverse grip intended to strike him from behind.  
But he struck lucky. His hand struck her by the wrist, dropping her kunai, and her hand striking empty she lost her footing. He grabbed her and spun her into him, twisting her arm almost painfully behind her back, and held her close across her shoulders with his dominant hand. She struggled out of his hold but he had her almost buckling at the knees, stopping her. She stilled when she felt the dull edge pressed against her throat.

  
They stood almost in an embrace, her back pressed against his front while her arm was held almost painfully, separating them from touching. In this position, she felt hot breath panting hard against her ear and neck, and his arm across her shoulders was almost vice-like.

  
“Point to Saizo! Nice turnaround!”

  
Saizo let go of Kagero, who rubbed her arm to ease the soreness from his hold. Walking away, he bent down to where her kunai dropped, and she saw a hint of a grin as he picked it up. When he turned to give it to her, he looked as pleased as a cat who caught a fish.

  
“Naturally,” he preened, holding her kunai to her.

  
Carefully stilling her face so as to be a mask, she took her weapon but with no small mount of disdain. He smiled wider at her irritation.

  
There was a good sizable crowd now, which included the people whom Master Omozu gave a scolding to, and the chatter grew louder as people commented on the match or alternatively shouted encouragement.

  
She could hear a pair of girls shouting: “Go go, Kagero! You can do it!”

  
A boy cried out: “Beat that little shit! Make him eat dirt!”

  
“You’ll get what you deserved!”

  
Eventually, gossip over Kagero’s abilities against Saizo’s emerged, although the latter isn’t without his own supporters, taking over as the common conversation. The Igasato ninja grimaced slightly, feeling the overwhelming number of people wanting to see them lose more than the other, particularly coming from those whom they sparred against. Out of the corner of her eye, Kagero noticed that many from Hasegawa’s group were giving Saizo the evil eye, which he pointedly tried to ignore and not look in their general direction.

  
“These folks are out for blood,” muttered Goemon, his heavy-lidded eyes scowling as his normally lackadaisical expression tensed up.

  
“We have only Saizo to thank,” replied Haruto.

  
“Well, if anyone gives us any flak, we can just say we’re still kids, learning and growing. Also, we did wipe the floor with a lot of the other guys, so we’re not exactly going to lose face. Those guys would just have to live with the fact that a kunoichi who wasn’t even part of this training segment beat them all to it.”

  
“And if Saizo loses, his dad would raise hell on him, not us.”

  
“Right. We’re just Saizo’s other clan members focused on training and improving ourselves.”

  
“Practically not even acquaintances.”

  
“Saizo? Which Saizo? The Third?”

  
Saizo gave them a dirty sidelong glance.

  
“Seriously, you’re trying to hang me out to dry?”

  
“It’s all you, Saizo,” said Goemon, raising his hand.

  
The fifth in his name grumbled under his breath and wiped the sweat from his brow. Kagero observed him from her side, noticing that however much he tried to ignore the crowd, he seemed to be feeling the pressure. He sighed heavily, reaching for his towel lying on the side of the circle and wiped down his face and neck. Dirt streaked his arms and down the sides of his pants. She didn’t fare much better, a pale coating of dust upon her uniform almost coloring it brown.  
“Try to ignore them,” she said, reconciliatory.

  
Saizo sighed heavily. “Yeah, I know.”

  
“Hey.”

  
He looked up, interested.

  
“This is between you and me. No one else matters for now, and nothing else either except for our pride.”

  
He took her words in, his gaze not wavering from hers as he searched for sincerity in her expression. He nodded, and assumed his position.

  
Closing her eyes, she smiled, satisfied and feeling tranquility welling up within at the sureness of her words.

  
Goemon raised his hand and a hush fell on the crowd as they waited with anticipation.

  
In the moment in between when the judge raised his hand and dropping it down, Kagero and Saizo considered one another and it was almost like the people around them didn’t exist at all. Pride for Shirasagi definitely set the battle between them and it still does.

  
However, she also wanted a reason to measure her strength against him, and especially against him.  
  
If Saizo the Fifth intended to follow the footsteps of the previous Saizos before him and will continue so ever after, then she would match herself against a legend, and prove she is not just any ninja who swore loyalty to the royal family. Whatever the outcome, what mattered is not the honor of her family or her brother or the royal family.

  
It was something she solely wanted for herself.

  
Goemon’s arm lowered and in a flash the two were at each other.

  
The crowd was silent; it was almost as though everyone was holding their breath. The only sound was the clanging of kunai struck and battle cries as they went after each other. Kagero became more daring, carrying out a furious flurry of strikes at Saizo who was barely parrying and avoiding each blow. She depended mostly on her speeding, knowing his reflexes were not as quick as hers with a knife, and with each strike her momentum propelled her forth and heightened the force exerted on him. He was soon backing away, his distance away from the edge of the circle whittling down until he was near the line drawn. At the sight of it, the crowd began to excited chant and yelled encouragement for Kagero and Saizo.

  
Kagero made a mistake, her footwork fumbling, and she almost fell just as she was about to land another blow that would have pushed him back. Saizo, seizing the moment, caught her other arm and swung her with the intention of tossing her out of the ring, a smile glinting as she caught sight of his face.

  
Instead of being flung out, Kagero tucked in her body so that the force would be pulled inwards. Grabbing hold of Saizo’s arm with her other hand, she pulled at him and spun around to the other side still within the sparring circle. She held fast to Saizo, and she then used her built up momentum to fling him back inside the circle nearly to the opposite side.

  
“Gh-!” Saizo staggered, hopping almost on one foot as he tried to stop himself from going over. The crowd gasped and exclaimed, excitedly looking to see if he would step out of bounds. Then he righted himself and twisted so that he could face Kagero.

  
He was almost too late. Picking up the kunai she dropped, Kagero immediately went at him, slashing at him from down low which he quickly parried. They resumed their melee attack, both of them now matching each other’s moves and attack patterns. It took only two rounds but each found that they can push each other in the same way their training have pushed them to practice and refine their abilities. The crowd took on admiring looks, the competition between the two fighters forgotten in favor of comparing techniques and how each seem to take on a perfectly choreographed demonstration in lieu of a match.

  
The effect was not lost on either combatants. There was something pleasing in how each were able to do more, to be more. There was no room for hesitation or contemplation as they grappled and struggled against each other, finding weaknesses and exploiting them, and eventually overcoming them. Instinct reigned, and Kagero saw Saizo smiling broadly as they fought, not knowing that she was smiling in turn.

  
So caught up in the match, Kagero forgot herself. People who have trained and fought with her know the familiar stance she took when she saw an opening, and knew immediately that something impressive -and dangerous- would take place.

Realization fell over their faces when Kagero jumped back a few feet to gain room between her and Saizo, saw her crouch low and rear back her right arm with kunai in hand, and paused just for a moment while looking squarely at Saizo.

  
Her combatant, to his credit, was able to realize what would soon transpire, and like a deer caught in the eyes of a tiger, looked at her with wide eyes as it dawned on him that he would meet his impending doom.

  
“Uh, wait,” he said lamely.

  
But it fell on deaf ears. Caught in the moment, she drowned out his words with her battle cry:

  
“This won’t miss!”

  
With two steps, she jumped high into the air and threw her kunai like a missile right at Saizo.

  
The crowd gasped. Saizo took one quick breath, so quiet yet so loud to his ears, and thought his heart had stopped.

  
Her kunai struck true at his own weapon, and the strike was so loud it echoed across the field. Instantly, his kunai was struck away from his hand, and the crowd cried out as it flew into the air, people ducking or moving away from its general direction as it whistled away.

  
The force of the blow sent shock reverberations down his arm. His nerves ranged in his body, and his entire arm spasmed as he lowered it, crying out in pain. He looked up, and saw in his last moments of standing right side up in the world, Kagero charging swiftly at him.

  
Everyone was silent, the air only disturbed by his yelp as she tackled him to the ground, floundering like a fish as she scrambled on top of him to pin his hand behind his back while pushing his face into the ground.

  
Saizo, for his part, was too dumbfounded to react properly; he really thought his life flashed before his eyes. He struggled only so he wouldn’t suffocate from eating dirt into his mouth, and when he looked up when he lifted his chin from the ground, he saw Kagero’s kunai embedded nearly to the handle into the ground. He stared wide-eyed at the significance of it.

  
“Holy- Ack!” Kagero, having pinned his hand successfully behind his back, went further to press her knee into his spine and put her hand on the back of his head.

  
“Ha ha! Say ‘uncle!’” She yelled desperately, triumphant.

  
Saizo wriggled and moan under her.

  
“Can’t hear you!” She goaded.

  
Saizo spat out some dust. “Uncle, you crazy girl!”

  
No sooner had he said it, hands grabbed Kagero from her shoulders and she was forcibly pulled back from Saizo. She yelled in protest, landing on the seat of her pants, and froze when she looked up and saw Master Omozu glaring down at her.

  
Kagero coughed and said softly, “Ahem, Master Omozu.”

  
The more that Omozu glared down at her with his forehead and mouth in a frown, the more she shrank down from him. He turned his head to look pointedly at the space next to Saizo, who was slowly turning around on the ground so he lay supine and coughed upwards, and her gaze fell on the kunai, the full weight of what she almost did bringing her down from her victory high.

  
“Oh…”

  
“‘Oh’ is right, Kagero!” Omozu barked, turning his gaze back to her. “You of all people should know better than to use your full strength during sparring. Did you think for one moment what would have happened if you missed?”

  
Kagero looked from Master Omozu to Saizo, who was being helped up by his brother now surrounded by his cohorts from Igasato, and a chill went down her spine.

  
“Not to mention,” continued Omozu, “the fact that you also could have hurt any one of the people here-” at this, he gestured towards the crowd who had until then remained silent until a murmur of conversation buzzed through, “-because of you thought it was a better idea to disarm your opponent. Saizo’s knife could have hit any one of us and seriously injure them. Or worse, have died. It didn’t hit anyone, thank the Dawn Dragon! But don’t think for one second that you succeeded in anything other than getting lucky!”

  
Kagero averted her eyes downward, looking away from anyone and at anything. She never wanted anyone to see her like this, and certainly not to drag anyone into to her selfishness. For it was selfishness, and pride, which led her to wanting to measure herself against a legend her age, and for that she almost egregiously harmed a boy her age who, if she was being honest, not any more special than her and shouldn’t have been treated as though he was his father.

  
She felt very small, then, as shame bubbled up inside her, sour and chilling.

  
Feeling numb in the summer heat, she just let the tumult of the crowd and its cascade of voices wash over her and fill up her head, wanting to focus on anything other than the master ninja before her.

  
“Did you see that hit? It was like she launched it from Yukimura’s puppets!”

  
“It’s practically buried in the ground!”

  
“Look at how deep the cracks are!”

  
Saizo sat up and swiped his hand across his mouth to remove dust and dirt. His head hurt and he felt dizzy, but what hurt more was his pride. He had completely not seen it coming, even though he was the first of the two to scale back the battle once it became too heated. By his side, Kaze handed him a skin of water and he took it to drink deeply.

  
“I guess Shirasagi really got their ace in the hole with this one,” said Goemon, awestruck.

  
Kaze peered down around Saizo to look at the kunai, eyes as wide as saucers. “Brother, you could have died!”

  
Saizo sat with his arms on his knees, face dumb with horror at the full realization that the life of Saizo the Fifth could have ended at fourteen years old.

  
“…I could have died.” His voice was faint, dazed. He locked eyes with Kagero, and she looked away, awkward and uncertain.

She heard what he said, and she wondered if he would reproach her, or worse, if he wanted nothing to do with her.

  
The chatter died a little and the crowd parted to reveal an authoritative figure. Following the crowd’s attention, Kagero can only look aghast as the serene face of Yukimura approached while holding what looked like a tree branch.

  
“Ah, Omozu, I thought I would find the source of this murder weapon.”

  
Kagero blanched. It was indeed Saizo’s kunai embedded in the wood that he was holding.

  
Yukimura continued. “Here I was, surveying the batch of new ninja recruits only to find that I, and as well as any other person, was almost cut down in my prime by friendly fire.”

  
Kagero shut her eyes tight, dread welling up within her alongside shame in an uneasy nauseous mix, and she put her hands on her face and leaned back until she fell on the ground, wanting to sink down in it. She tried to rationalize it. She was too eager, too young, so she didn’t purposefully try to seriously harm her opponent. She never thought what she did would actually work, as when she did that she only visualized what she wanted to happen, which it did. No, that line of thinking sounded much worse than what she actually did. Better to take it on the chin.

  
Still, the look Saizo gave her almost looked like fear, and she felt more disheartened by his wide-eyed look (like she was someone a little abnormal or a little dangerous or a little too dark) than any scolding made by her superiors or nearly maiming a general.

  
Yukimura dipped the piece of wood towards Omozu, and the latter took it to examine in awe. Likewise, the people closest to Omozu made a loud “Ohhh!” in amazement, for the knife that was flung from Saizo’s hand was so forceful that it likewise embedded itself deeply into the wood almost as precise as when Kagero threw hers into the ground.

  
“Yikes,” murmured Omozu. “Should I be amazed or horrified.”

  
“Perhaps if this handiwork were by the hands of our fated Nohrian enemies, I would curse the name of whoever it was with my dying breath,” said Yukimura, cheerfully. Something about how he said it so casually while maintaining a serene expression sent a chill through Kagero’s skin, as though the air was cold and not heavy with hot humidity. Omozu grimaced uneasily at the general.

  
“But because this impressive feat of strength was committed by one of our ninja-in-training, then I must at the very least offer congratulations while giving a stern warning about overusing lethal means!”

  
Kagero sighed, and an audible sigh of relief was heard from many other people including Master Omozu.

  
“Is it all right if we speak, Kagero?”

  
She looked up and saw Yukimura gazing down kindly at her. Briefly tongue-tied, she quickly sat up and kneeled forward to bow her head. “Of course, Master Yukimura. Please forgive my earlier actions. I… forgot to restrain myself.”

  
Next to her, she heard Saizo mutter quietly in disbelief, “…she forgot?”

  
Yukimura folded his arms and gave a brief nod. “Well, we shall give you a good scolding for good measure, but I know that you’re usually more level-headed. Still, this won’t go unnoticed and I will have to talk with your master as well.”

  
Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, and she grimaced. Still, she kept her head low so as to not look so dark in his eyes.

  
“I understand, Master Yukimura.”

  
Yukimura walked past her, and said, “Let us meet at the East Dragon Training Hall in a few minutes, then. I will go look for your master.”

  
With him gone, Kagero let out a sigh of relief. Her shoulders dropped and she still looked down on the ground thinking dark thoughts while Master Omozu shouted at everyone to clean up the training field.

  
A pair of feet stepped in front of her, and she looked up to see an outstretched hand. The hand is attached to an arm and that arm belonged to Saizo, looking down at her to meet her eyes steadily and not down his nose. After a moment’s pause, he moved his hand closer to her, his mouth almost approaching a scowl in annoyance. Collecting herself, she reached out to grip firmly and he pulled her up almost too suddenly.

  
Looking away, she dusted off the seat of her pants, taking her time to not speak for a moment. He looked away as well and restlessly kicked at the dirt.

  
“Sorry that I almost hurt you,” she mumbled.

  
Saizo rubbed the back of his head and sighed. “That’s okay, I guess.”

  
Looking up, she noticed that Kaze was giving his brother a pointed look, and he added, “And I know you didn’t mean it. I know what that’s like, getting caught up in the heat of the battle. Not that I thought about actually throwing my kunai at someone without them knowing it in a spar…”

  
Kagero winced. “I’m deeply sorry about that.”

  
“I also don’t appreciate getting my head slammed in the dirt.”

  
“Yes, I’m sorry about that, as well.”

  
“I mean, I almost thought that was a grudge match, and if so, that last time-”

  
Kaze quickly stepped in. “Let’s leave it at that, okay Brother?”

  
Saizo breathed in, his mouth still open and was about ready to finish what he was saying, then thought better of it, and closed his mouth. “Yeah, well, whatever.”

  
Goemon spoke up. “It was nice seeing Saizo almost get maimed.”

  
With a growl, he reached over to grab at Goemon who skirted out of the way, but she saw he was grinning slightly.

  
Kagero wasn’t sure what to make of Saizo, but she felt a little bit relieved at his devil-may-care nature. She clasped her hands in front of her and bowed towards Saizo.

  
“Thank you for indulging me in the match. For what it’s worth, I thought it was a good one.”

  
He paused from assaulting his friend to return her greeting in kind. Hands firmly clasped in front of him, he said, “Thank you for the match.”

  
She was about to walk away when he added, “I think…”

  
Kagero turned to look back. Saizo looked sheepish while trying to find the right words.

  
“…I think you were right. You won the match, and so… I acknowledge your strength.”

  
Surprised, Kagero almost too quickly said, “Oh, thank you.”

  
Saizo shook his head. “I mean it. The others before were… garbage,” he said candidly, waving his hand in dismissal. “But I will no longer underestimate what Shirasagi has to offer. If I meet other warriors as surprising as yourself, then I have nothing to worry about.”

  
She gave him a small smile, pleased. “You honor me with your words. I can guarantee that I display only but a sampling of what the capital has within its walls.”

  
He nodded. “I look forward to another match with you again, Kagero.”

  
She smiled wider, and said quickly before turning away, “Likewise, Saizo the Fifth.”

  
As Kagero walked away, she thought that no amount of scolding or death-defying feats would topple over the win she obtained today in making a new friend. Better still, in proving herself and finding acceptance in her caliber while changing their own tune.

  
And just as warmly, in knowing that Saizo seemed a much nicer person when he smiles.

 

 

 


End file.
